ECO:nomics: Water, the Next Scarce Resource

3/22/2013 2:30AM

Changes in the environment, population and industry have created water scarcity in some areas. Terry L. Anderson the President of The Property and Environment Research Center and Gretchen W. McClain the CEO of Xylem discuss how society can meet these water challenges.

This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.

I ... I can and cheery ... come from different very different perspectives great in the corporate world during the ... World Coal dedicated to solving Watertown says ... well we actually get into how you do that ... let's just set the stage with the problem to begin with if you were here earlier Larry Brown he made the case that ... it isn't necessarily that there isn't enough water ... that the challenges rather getting it likely that the right time for the re use you actually need it for ... that has proved incredibly challenging over the years and are not all these other industries that have ... made always greeted me and it that we still struggle in the water sector ... my understanding is there some unique history and challenges that make ... that why it's can you talk a little bit about ... why wire markets are such a challenge ... why would ... I would start ... but the wider industry has grown over time it takes to develop Regents today ... aam ... many years ago growing fast he needed the regulatory requirement of renowned groundwater around wastewater and being lighter and so you've got a very ... fragmented industry today that now has really stop growing industry here slowed down substantially ... bikes ... the infrastructure was put in place is over a hundred fifty years ... so clearly needs to be addressed and ... so I would say the fragmentation is cars ... as well as the fact that ... water though we talk about is that global issue is very local in nature ... so you've got a great technologies ... developed a new experience with the team in market sought to kill issue ... may be a very small company that doesn't count The reached in the ability to take their technology and expertise and expand that's probably what sells those that might have missed both ... would you even see there are good water markets across the country is the market yet ... there are good niche markets and water ... the water and streamlining still needs to come together and look at itself as a pure market ... because its fragmented we had this even with in the industry ... not looking like one industry interesting what you gotta think about water which is the cycle what are you can just address each situation and and ... you're ... welcome to the first point about the ... we have so much water and that's what we have a friend of mine once that week at wastewater nine for thought about it but ... the answer to what is that we wasted we waste capital ... we waste where we use the water when we use the water but waters there so the ... challenge is to deal with ... the capital the infrastructure ... and I think getting to the infrastructure we built our HSAs are social settings around this legal or medical school community and say we want to sell water from here ... to there where there is a big city and the local folks that ... I don't think so ... and and therein lies the real challenge for for creating water markets if if we allow people ... that ... to stand in the way of these kind of transfers even if they make good economic sense and then water markets could stifle the we don't really know the value ... using that there aren't actually though in some cases real scarcity issues because it's ... it's interesting ... it's usually presented that way ... we need for intensive you a lot of the complex and Western America ... there's this argument that there is enough water for the fish and towns and agriculture and everything else he needed for ... is that not the case well it's definitely the case that their scarcity ago it would be that you know that that's the problem ... water scarcity and yet when pricing is if it's cheaper than dirt ... and better and lies the problem in yet ... the solution is always well shouldn't we ... increase the price should be priced water at the right price ... first question is who is we and then what's the right price and ... that's why we have to have marked ... Christian who is weak ... Wayne and ... me as all of us I mean you can't ... water industry and to say it is just ... it's it's just that ... the end users it's also the industry within the water and it also government look and local and state government and federal governments in terms of how we address this ... is a complex issue ... I'm getting back to the scarcity issue there is most definitely a scarcity of seventy three tracks it's not that there's not water ... it's really ... usable water and being able to use it as you talk about scary ... being in a move that water where you need ... the energy they use this and once let alone the water it takes to create the energy that we need a ... common you look at ... urbanization you look of population growth we do think a scarcity of emerging markets ... but in the last thirty three states today are facing scarcity ... and are certain areas around the